Still groovin' at Woodstock after 45 years

BETHEL — The spirit of the Woodstock festival came back to life Friday as folks celebrated its 45th anniversary in various ways to show it was about more than just the music.

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By Andrew Beam

recordonline.com

By Andrew Beam

Posted Aug. 16, 2014 at 2:00 AM

By Andrew Beam

Posted Aug. 16, 2014 at 2:00 AM

» Social News

BETHEL — The spirit of the Woodstock festival came back to life Friday as folks celebrated its 45th anniversary in various ways to show it was about more than just the music.

It was a chance to see friends they hadn't seen since last year's celebration, a chance to view the documentary film that encapsulates what it was like to be at the 1969 music festival, or for some, simply a chance to set up a tent and soak in the overall vibe of the weekend.

No matter how they chose to honor the event, the theme of peace, love and happiness ran throughout the town where the original Woodstock festival took place. Many participants were adorned in tie-dye, flashing peace signs or just embracing what it means to be a part of a community.

"The vibe is excellent and the people are excellent," said Ruth Andrews of Cuddebackville, who attended the 1994 Woodstock festival in Saugerties, and several of the past anniversary celebrations in Bethel. "I've never met people with such a spirit of kindness and understanding."

Forestburgh resident George Billeci was excited for the chance to see the director's cut of the documentary film at Bethel Woods, as it includes performances not in the original film. He also looked forward to watching it outdoors, on the same field where the 1969 festival took place.

"It's usually not on the field," Billeci said. "It's kind of nice."

A different kind of reunion was held up the road at Max Yasgur's old homestead, now owned by Jeryl Abramson, where campers traipsed through the woods and set up tents wherever they could find space. Along the dirt path, vendors sold wood carvings with the Grateful Dead emblem, campers tended to their fires and bands filled the space with a wall of sound.

Traye Lovejoy and Jesse Wilkinson, both from Carbon County, Pennsylvania, attended the reunion festival as part of the Eclectic Circus, a band of performers doing tricks ranging from fire-breathing to stilt walking. They spoke of the freedom of performing and the enjoyment of seeing the joy in a person's face as a result of their art, and how it all relates back to the human connection.

"If everyone had one hobby, and the payoff was to make people smile, there probably wouldn't be a problem (in the world)," Wilkinson said. "Then you have a link to someone."